SUMMIT COUNTY – Summit Stage launched its winter public transit schedule on Sunday, providing service enhancements on several routes throughout Summit County. Winter routes and schedules run through mid-April.

The most significant change is the addition of a new route that provides service between Breckenridge and the Town of Blue River. The Blue River Commuter includes two morning trips and two afternoon trips in each direction. Morning buses depart Quandary Road in Blue River at 6:55 a.m. and 8:25 a.m. Returning buses leave Breckenridge at 4 p.m. and 6:10 p.m. The service operates seven days per week and runs during winter only. The Town of Blue River is funding half the operating cost of the new route this winter.

“We’re really excited to be able to provide service to the Town of Blue River for the first time,” Summit Stage Director Jim Andrew said. “For Blue River residents, this opens up a whole new option for commuting, and it serves as a free, reliable alternative to using a personal vehicle.”

Summit County residents and visitors will again have shorter rides to ski areas during the winter season, thanks to the Summit Stage’s morning express routes. The routes provide service to Keystone and Breckenridge with fewer local stops along the way, shaving off as much as 15 minutes of travel time, relative to the standard routes. Buses on the express routes run once every morning, seven days a week, from Silverthorne to Keystone and from Silverthorne to Breckenridge via Frisco.

“When we first launched these express routes last year, they were incredibly popular,” Andrew said. “This year, we’ve fine-tuned the schedule so that you can arrive in time to get fresh tracks.”

The Breckenridge Express departs Ptarmigan at 7:10 a.m., stops at Silverthorne Station at 7:25 a.m., Frisco Station at 7:40 a.m., School Road at 7:42 a.m., Granite Street at 7:45 a.m., arriving at Breckenridge Station at 8 a.m.

The Keystone Express departs Ptarmigan at 7:15 a.m., stops at Silverthorne Station at 7:30 a.m., Summit Place at 7:32 a.m., Lake Dillon Drive at 7:37 a.m., Lake Dillon Fire-Rescue at 7:38 a.m., arriving at River Run in Keystone at 7:50 a.m. Skiers and riders headed to Arapahoe Basin can catch the Swan Mountain Flyer to arrive at the Basin at 8:10 a.m.

“Both express routes are particularly great for visitors staying in Silverthorne-area hotels,” Andrew said. “They can get to Breck or Keystone in one straight shot, rather than having to change buses at Silverthorne Station.”

As part of the Stage’s switch to winter service on Nov. 22, the Swan Mountain Flyer resumed, providing hourly daytime service between Breckenridge, Keystone and Arapahoe Basin. The Flyer also runs in the evenings on dates that Keystone offers night skiing.

Daytime buses on the Copper Mountain route increased in frequency, running every 30 minutes rather than hourly. Winter rush-hour buses provide more frequent morning and afternoon service on the Silverthorne Loop, Wildernest Loop and Copper Mountain routes. Last winter, rush-hour buses only ran during the morning.

The Lake County Link, which provides service between Leadville, Copper and Frisco, is maintaining the usual morning departures from Leadville at 5:50 a.m. and 7:10 a.m. New mid-day service includes a Leadville-bound trip that departs the Frisco Transit Center at 12 noon and a Frisco-bound trip that departs CMC Leadville at 12:45 p.m. The last bus to Leadville now leaves Frisco Station at 9 p.m., ensuring that Bustang riders returning from Denver are able to continue on to Leadville via the Summit Stage.